Tommy and Annika: Celebrates New Year's Day
by Pre-Animation Man
Summary: A New Year's party reunites two friends who have quarreled.


Mr. Settigren's Painting Club on Tuesdays had ten boys and girls in it. The same ten boys and girls were in Mrs. Settigren's Make-It Club on Fridays. They made things in a room called "Settigren Bungalow" on the side of Mr. and Mrs. Settigren's garage.

Tommy and Annika and Anna and Willie lived very near Mr. and Mrs. Settigren. They often stayed late at the Make-It Club. Sometimes they went riding with Mr. Settigren on their bicycles.

One day they were all riding to the store. Each of them had a list of things to buy. Mr. Settigren's list was the longest.

"Christmas will be very soon," said Anna.

"And New Year's Day will be the week after that," said Willy.

"Lots of people make New Year's RESOLUTIONS on that day," said Annika.

"I made a resolution last New Year's Day," said Anna.

"What was it?" asked Tommy.

"Never to get angry at anyone," said Anna. "But I broke it lots of times. I broke it last week too."

"Who made you angry last week?" asked Annika.

"The Scottish girl, Brianna, who is in our room at school," said Anna.

"What did he do to you?" asked Willie.

"He didn't do anything to me," said Anna. "But he got angry at the German girl, Diva, for no reason at all."

"There must have been SOME reason," said Annika.

"Well, yes," said Anna. "But it wasn't a GOOD reason."

"What was it?" asked Willy.

"Well, Diva's country did something that Brianna's country didn't like. Brianna s father told him about it," said Anna.

"What's that got to do with us here in America?" said Annika.

"Nothing," said Anna. "That's why I got angry at Brianna for getting angry at Diva."

"Did Diva get angry too?" asked Tommy. "Yes," said Anna. "Now they won't speak to each other at all."

"And they were good friends before,"

said Annika.

"Well, well," said Mr. Settigren. "There ought to be some way to get those boys to be friends again."

"They both like folk dancing," said Anna. "The kind we do at school when the special teacher comes."

"We could have a folk dance party," said Willie, "and ask both Brianna and Diva to come."

"We could have it on New Year's Day," said Anna.

"But where could we have it?" said Tommy.

"Perhaps we could have it at Settigren Bungalow," said Mr. Settigren. "Do you have any records for the dances?"

"Yes — I have records for ten dances," said Anna. "And we have learned all the dances in school."

"We'll talk to Mrs. Settigren," said Mr. Settigren. "I guess we could get about ten people dancing in that room."

"We'll help you move the big work tables," said Anna. "I'm glad they will fold up."

"And our mothers will send over things to eat," said Tommy.

"We'll invite all the children in the Painting Club and the Make-It Club," said Willie. "Both Diva and Brianna are in the clubs."

"We could all wear costumes from other countries," said Anna. "Then Diva and Brianna could wear theirs."

"I have one from Italy," said Willie.

"I have one from China," said Annika.

"Our dancing teacher, Mrs. Lopez, is from Mexico," said Anna. "She might have some other costumes, too."

"If she came to the party she could bring some of her records," said Annika.

"And she could help us with the dances," said Tommy.

"We'll ask Mrs. Settigren," said Mr. Settigren.

When they came back from the store they told Mrs. Settigren all about the folk dance party.

"That's a wonderful idea!" said Mrs. Settigren. "I'll ask Mrs. Lopez to bring her husband too."

"They might do a Mexican dance for us," said Anna.

"They might wear Mexican costumes," said Annika.

"Then maybe Carlos would wear his," said Tommy. "He would not bring it to school to show us. He was too bashful."

"Only five of us need to borrow costumes," said Anna. "Five of the other boys and girls have their own."

"Five?" said Tommy.

"Yes," said Willie. "From Scotland, Germany, Italy, China, and Mexico."

"We'll see if Mrs. Lopez has any that we could borrow," said Anna.

Mrs. Lopez thought that the party was a fine idea.

"I can fix up five other costumes if you will help me," she said to Anna and Willie.

"From five other countries?" asked Willie.

"I think so," said Mrs. Lopez.

Right after Christmas they all began to get ready for the New Year's Day Party.

Mrs. Lopez came to the Make-It Club to make costumes and Mrs. Settigren helped her.

"Brianna and Diva are still not friends," said Willie.

"I hope the party will help," said Anna.

"We'll have a good time, anyway," said Mrs. Settigren.

New Year's Day finally came. The party began at three o'clock in the afternoon.

Mr. and Mrs. Settigren gave everyone a surprise. They were dressed up too. They wore costumes of the early days in America. They said they would dance a minuet after a while.

The Make-It Room was all decorated too. Tommy and Annika and Willie and Anna had put up crepe paper streamers of many colors. The streamers were tacked to the wood at the edges of the ceiling.

During the party Brianna stayed on one side of the room and Diva stayed on the other side. They did not look at each other.

When it was time to do a German dance, Brianna did not ask anyone to be his partner.

"Please dance this one with me," said Willie. "I know it very well."

"No," said Brianna. "It's German. I don't like it."

Later, there was a Scottish dance called a reel. Diva would not dance it. "I don't like Scottish dances," he said to Anna. "I don't do them anymore."

"You two boys are acting very silly," said Anna. "You were good friends, and now you have let something that happened long ago in Europe turn you into enemies!" She turned quickly and walked away.

"Oh dear," he said Anna to Mrs. Settigren. "I broke my New Year's resolution again. I became angry with Diva."

"Perhaps you were not really angry," said Mrs. Settigren. "Perhaps you were only — disgusted."

Tommy came up and said, "I just broke my New Year's resolution. I wasn't going to call anyone names. But I just called Brianna a name. I told him he was a dunce to act this way!"

"We will now do a dance called the Paul Jones," said Mrs. Lopez. "Let's all get into a circle."

Tommy gasped. "There goes Brianna. He's going into the circle!"

"He took a partner!" said Anna. "And they're right behind Diva!"

The music played. The circle went round and round. Then they did the "grand right and left." They took the hands of different partners as they moved around the circle.

Just then Willie twisted her ankle and sat down on the floor. The music stopped.

Diva was at Willie's side. He tried to help her up. Brianna was near them, and he got on the other side of Willie.

Willie stood up. "It's all right," she said. "It doesn't hurt at all, really."

Diva and Brianna looked at each other. They began to grin. Then they shook hands.

"I guess we're living over here now," Diva said.

"And we can't help what happened on the other side of the ocean," said Brianna.

"We were both silly to get angry," said Diva.

"Yes, we really were," said Brianna.

"Now we will do the Highland Fling," said Mrs. Lopez.

"Oh, good — that's my favorite dance," said Diva. "Hop, hop, and never stop!"

"I like it best, too," said Brianna. "Especially when I am wearing my Scottish kilt."

They hurried into the line so they would be in place when the music started.

"Well," said Anna to Mrs. Settigren, "sometimes you have to forget your New Year's resolutions — just a little bit."

"Yes," said Mrs. Settigren. "I guess sometimes you do. Let's bring the refreshments in."

* * *

A/N: Tommy is wearing a green hooded jacket under a white t-shirt, blue rolled-up jeans, gray ankle socks, and dark maroon sneakers with white stripes, Annika is wearing a light blue blouse with small pink hearts on the bottom, a purple skirt, magenta leggings, yellow flats, and a lilac headband, Anna is wearing turquoise hoodie under a white t-shirt, gray jeans, light yellow socks, and magenta sneakers with black stripes, Willie is wearing white long sleeved shirt under a light green tank top, blue pants, orange Converse like heels, Willy is wearing light blue tunic under a yellow hoodie shirt, blue sweatpants, red toms, blackish arm computer, light magenta backpack with a hoverboard attached to it, Diva is wearing white heart earrings, lavender t-shirt, denim green Capri, purple sandals, and Brianna is wearing white long sleeved shirt under a yellow t-shirt with a purple stripe in the middle, brown Capri, white ankle socks, pink sneakers.

Willy, Brianna, and Dive belong to Sierra.


End file.
